


More Than Instinct

by malyce



Category: X-Men (Movies)
Genre: F/M, Road Trip, rogue goes home, teenagers with superpowers should have a little fun
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-14
Updated: 2013-06-14
Packaged: 2017-12-14 22:41:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,180
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/842194
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/malyce/pseuds/malyce
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sequal to "Homecoming." Wolverine and Rogue take a side trip to Mississippi. It goes about as well as can be expected.</p>
            </blockquote>





	More Than Instinct

The sunbeams were shining through the dusty blinds in the hotel room, assaulting Logan's eyeballs as he slowly came out of his sleepy state. When he opened his eyes, he could see that Marie was already awake and perched impatiently on the end of his bed. What had started as a simple pick up and delivery mission had landed him in a hotel in the middle of Redneckville with a throbbing hangover and with Marie glaring icily at him while she idly jostled the bedsprings.  
  
"What time is it?" he asked.  
  
"Almost noon," she snapped.  
  
"Why didn't you wake me up?" Rogue narrowed her eyes at him.  
  
"Logan, last time I tried to wake you up, we both nearly got killed." Even in his half conscious state, he had to admit that she had a point. He groaned audibly.  
  
"How far is it to... where is it we're going again?"  
  
"Mississippi. It'd only be another hour if we put the bike in gear," she pointed out. Logan grimaced.  
  
"It's daytime, Kid. I can't push the 'special button' when there are cops around." Rogue only gave him a shrug and a condescending smirk; he recognized that expression. He had seen it in the mirror. Lately, her facial expressions had grown eerily similar to his own. It was starting to unnerve him just a little.  
  
In theory, the mission should have been a relatively easy one, but no missions were ever simple when Logan was involved. Professor Xavier had sent Logan to accompany Rogue while she visited her mother for the second time in years. After spending the night at Marie's house, they would then go to New Mexico to pick up another conductor from one of Charles’ agents for the broken radio in the jet. As it turned out, one of a kind air travel devices with advanced military technology came with many parts that couldn't be found within the limits of New York City.  
  
"You're sending me halfway across the country to fix a radio?" Logan had asked the Professor while he carelessly flicked a bit of ash from his cigar at an expensive looking oriental rug. Charles had narrowed his eyes at the fat cigar in Logan's mouth, but had said nothing.  
  
"It's vital that we be able to communicate during missions," the professor argued, "and Scott says that listening to music in the jet relaxes him."  
  
"Oh, for-"  
  
"Logan," Xavier had cut him off, "It would mean a lot to Rogue. She hasn't seen her mother in a few months, and it's not entirely safe for her to go on her own." Logan grimaced. It was not out of the realm of possibility that Professor Xavier had literally just read his mind and intentionally used Marie to talk him into running his errands for him. The kid was his weak spot. Whatever sense of family or protectiveness or instinct had caused Logan to jump on top of the statue of liberty and bring her to life over the city of New York was kicking in at the moment.  
  
The idea had seemed painless at the time; both Logan and Marie were experienced with much worse travel conditions than a few days flying across the country on Scott's bike. This was before the bike had broken down in the middle of nowhere, and had to be dragged along the side of the interstate, in the pouring rain, to the nearest hotel.  
  
Rogue had insisted on stopping at the gas station for dinner and stocking up on beef jerky and gummi bears. While she was inside the tiny convenience store, Logan had managed to reconnect a few wires in a crude fashion. She re-emerged from the store with a plastic bag full of junk food and a six pack of beer under her arm.  
  
After a few hours of drinking the cheap, bitter beer from the gas station with a conspicuously under-aged girl, Logan realized that they would have to find a place to stay for the night. Driving a high speed bike after tossing back a few too many could be disastrous. They had stumbled into a hotel around four the previous morning, and promptly passed out. Logan put another hand to his temple.  
  
"Did you completely absorb my ability to handle liquor or what?"  
  
"It's almost eleven!" she argued. Logan pulled the comforter over his head and shut his eyes.  
  
"I'll get up in a few minutes."  
  


* * *

  
  
"Okay, so it was a little more than a few minutes," Logan admitted, "We can stay another night at your mom's if you want." They walked to the parking lot with their backpacks in hand. Marie wiped a few drops of sweat from her neck, and exhaled heavily. The weather had grown warmer during the afternoon, and the sweat was condensing beneath her gloves and the scarf she draped around her neck. She had to shield her eyes from the reflective glare of the bike's chrome finish.  
  
Logan revved the engine. It made a squealing sound that caused both of them to cringe. He kicked it once, and it sputtered to life for only a few seconds before the whirl of the engine slowed to silence. With another turn of the key, it finally cranked.  
  
"Ha," Logan muttered under his breath, "Let's go, kid."  
  


* * *

  
  
  
  
The summer season was already halfway over, and the weather was scorching. It grew hot in the way that it can only get hot in July and in Mississippi. Mrs. D'Ancanto was trimming the hedges around the house. In the back pocket of her jeans was the folded letter from Rogue announcing that she and a friend would be coming to visit in a few days.  
  
A silver motorcycle glistened in the sunlight as it pulled into her driveway. She nearly dropped the hedge clippers when she saw her daughter ride into the driveway with her arms wrapped around a man she did not recognize.  
  
"Marie!" she waved. Her mother ran to the end of the driveway to meet them and grabbed her by the shoulders, "Or Rogue. Whoever you are, I'm glad to see you!" She gave Logan a look that was slightly disapproving.  
  
"Who's this?"  
  
"This is my friend, Logan," Marie introduced him. Wolverine extended his hand, and her mother shook it carefully, as though she were afraid that he might attack if she made any sudden movements. Marie dismounted the bike, and let Logan steer it closer to the garage.  
  
"Friend?" Mrs. D'Ancanto asked her daughter.  
  
"Yes," Marie replied hastily.  
  
"How good a friend?"  
  
"He saved my life," Rogue answered honestly, "Mama-" Marie protested. Her mother squeezed her tighter, and pressed her face against her hair, "Skin!" she shouted. Rogue managed to disentangle herself from her mother's grasp long enough to arrange her scarf around her throat. Marie's mother seemed to notice her outfit for the first time.  
  
"Honey, how can you wear gloves and a scarf in this weather?" she demanded.  
  
"Well, I-" Rogue started to argue.  
  
"You're going to die of heat stroke out here! Let me get you some water." Her mother walked to the house and let the screen door slam behind her. Marie sighed, knowing that it was useless to protest.  
  
In the yard next to hers, she faintly heard the sound of a basketball thumping against the pavement. She looked over the fence, and saw the top of Cody's head as he jumped up to toss the basketball into the hoop. The ball bounced off the rim, and rolled towards the fence. Marie hesitated, wondering what to do. The last time she had seen Cody, she had told him that it would be best if he didn't call her again. The memory of watching him go into a coma in her own bedroom had been enough of a nightmare; seeing him again had only made the painful recollection resurface. She got a closer look at her neighbor as he moved towards the fence; he looked like even more of an adult than he had during their last awkward encounter. Rogue crouched in front of the fence, and peered through a knot hole near Cody.  
  
"Boo!" she shouted. Cody jumped and dropped the basketball.  
  
"Marie?!" he asked, peeking back at her through the opening in the fence, "When did you get here?"  
  
"Just now," she replied, "How long are you going to be home?"  
  
"The rest of the summer," he answered. There was a pause for a few seconds.  
  
"Cody," she asked politely, "Would you like to come over? I think it'd be okay with my mom." He hesitated.  
  
"Are you sure?"  
  
"Look... about last time... I'm sorry I brushed you off like that," Rogue grimaced, "it was just my first time coming home, and I was a little scared. I had to leave after I only spent one night..."  
  
"Who's that with you?" Cody asked. Marie whirled around to see Logan carrying both of their bags and looking at her with a quizzical expression. She grinned as she realized how insane she must have looked talking to an unseen person on the other side of the fence.  
  
"Oh. He's a friend."  
  
Cody unlatched the opening to the gate that divided his yard from the D'Ancanto residence, and leaned forward, "Is it okay to give you a hug?" he asked cautiously.  
  
"Should be safe," she responded. Rogue pulled her scarf over her chin, and opened her arms to gather Cody in a tentative embrace. When she looked over his shoulder, she saw Logan pointedly dropping their bags near the front porch. Rogue rolled her eyes at him, and released the boy.  
  
"Cody, I'd like you to meet my friend, Logan . We're traveling to New Mexico in a couple days." she introduced them. She saw Logan cringe at the word "friend." She decided to ignore it. "Logan, this is Cody. He used to live next door to me; he's going to the University now." Cody smiled politely and extended a hand.  
  
"Good to meet you," he said. There was a significant pause. Logan didn't take Cody's extended hand, but actually leaned forward and sniffed the top of the boy's head. Marie felt her face turn crimson. Cody looked at her over Logan's head with a curious and slightly terrified expression, and she distinctly mouthed the words "I'm so sorry." After he backed away, Cody exhaled sharply.  
  
"I'll be inside," he said quickly. He gave Wolverine one last glance, and hurried into the house. When the door was closed, Rogue slugged Logan on the shoulder.  
  
"Ow!" he snapped, "What was that for?" She narrowed her dark eyes at him.  
  
"You know what that was for."  
  


* * *

  
  
Rogue was sitting cross legged on her bed while Cody examined the souvenirs and postcards that she procured from her backpack.  
  
"Niagara Falls was my favorite," she was saying. She pulled a crumpled postcard from out of her bag, and placed it on the bed in front of him, "This is a picture of it, but it's so much better than it looks on the card. 'Specially at night. There's a light show, and so many colors..."  
  
"I've always wanted to see Niagara Falls," he admitted, "It's too far away from here. I don't have the money to fly up to New York."  
  
"That's a shame."  
  
"It was the thing you wanted to see most, wasn’t it?" he asked.  
  
"Well," Rogue sighed, "I did want to see the Statue of Liberty."  
  
"Did you?"  
  
"More of it than I ever wanted to," She paused as she looked at the photograph again, "You know..." she smiled impishly, "Cody, I've got an idea."  
  
"Marie?" He knew that smile. He had grown up with Rogue, and understood that it inevitably meant trouble.  
  
"We should go see the Falls together."  
  
"We should," he agreed, "I'd like to see it with you." A gloved palm covered his knuckles.  
  
"Let's go tonight."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Yeah, why not? We'd be back by lunchtime tomorrow," she insisted.  
  
"How would we do that?" he asked.  
  
"Oh, I know a way." She cocked an eyebrow at him.  
  
"That's weird... that eyebrow thing," said Cody, "I've never seen you do that before."  
  
"It's just something I picked up," she drawled playfully, "Come out to the garage with me, and try not to make any noise."  
  


* * *

  
  
Logan heard the distant thunder of an engine roaring in his sleep, and he opened one eye. It took a few seconds before he realized what was happening.  
  
"Oh, shit!" he whispered before he covered his mouth and hoped he hadn’t roused Marie’s mother in the next room. He hopped off of the sofa and quickly jumped into his blue jeans as he ran out the door, neglecting to zip them. He made it to the porch just in time to see Rogue driving Scott's bike out of the garage.  
  
"Hey, Logan fixed it!" were the first words he heard.  
  
"Marie?!?" he called She steered the motorcycle to the edge of the driveway amidst a series loud and colorful protests from Wolverine.  
  
"What do we do now?" Cody asked. Marie looked at the controls; this was her first time operating the bike, but she intuitively knew what to do. She pushed the silver button. The bike surged, and then everything seemed to go into hyperdrive. Streetlamps and cars consisted of a single line of light.  
  
"I'm not sure how fast this thing can go," Rogue yelled over the wind, "Logan and I rode from New York to Mississippi in about four hours."  
  
"Do you know where we're going?"  
  
"Sorta. If we just travel Northeast along the interstate..."  
  
"You sure you know what you're doing, Marie?" He tightened his arms around her waist.  
  
"No!" She drove using only her instincts- Logan’s instincts, and they soared along the road.   
  
  
On the table between Logan and Mrs. D’Ancanto was a sheet of notebook paper with a brief message scribbled in Rogue’s loopy handwriting.  
 _  
Mom,  
  
Cody and I went out for a few hours. We'll be back sometime around breakfast.  
  
Don't Worry.  
  
Love, Marie.  
_  
The edges were curled, and the page had obviously been ripped from a spiral notebook.  
  
Mrs. D’Ancanto wore a blue bathrobe with butterflies delicately embroidered on the sleeves. Her eyes were red, and her hair was slightly messy. The clock in the hall struck, and they both jumped. Logan checked his watch.  
  
“It’s three in the morning,” he yawned, “she ought to be back in a couple hours.”  
  
"You know," she murmured, "I'd like to think that there was something more than instinct that kept parents from eating their young before they matured." Logan calmly took a sip of his iced tea.  
  
"She's going to be fine," he assured her. The clock ticked ominously, emphasizing each second that passed while Rogue and Cody were gone.  
  
"Cody's parents called; I wasn't sure what to say to them. I just told them he had gone out with Marie," she sighed, "The Marie I know wouldn't go running off in the middle of the night without tellin’ anyone." Logan wasn't sure how to respond to that. There was no easy way to tell Rogue’s mother that the girl he knew did things like that with some regularity. "Spirited" was probably the least judgmental way to describe her. "After she left town, everyone thought that John- my husband- had thrown her out. Some people were even sayin' that he'd beaten his own daughter. For being a mut... for being different," said Mrs. D'Ancanto, "the truth is, she ran away because she was terrified. And she just keeps running away."  
  
"She'll be back," Logan repeated, and he cringed as he heard himself speak the words out loud. He had said the same thing to Rogue years before when he had left her at Xavier’s school. _I’ll be back for these,_ he had said, as he handed her the dog tags she had noticed when they first met. Logan buried his head in his hands. Wouldn’t it be poetic justice if the kid were to do the exact same thing to him?  
  


* * *

  
  
At night, blue and green lights flashed behind Niagara Falls. The colored rays of light were shining on Rogue and Cody's grinning faces. Rogue's hair had gotten hopelessly tangled during their rapid, cross-country ride. Cody looked just as disheveled as his companion. His cheeks had been whipped by the violent wind, and his hair was sticking out in multiple directions. Rogue leaned on the rail that overlooked Niagara Falls. Water droplets splashed pleasantly across her face and neck, offering relief from the summer heat. She had shed her jacket and allowed it to fall next to her feet. The motorcycle was parked illegally just a few feet from the sidewalk. As the lights began to dim, Cody turned to face Rogue.  
  
"How does this whole 'superpower' thing work?" he asked nonchalantly.  
  
"Well," Rogue began, "we all have different abilities- the mutants. We're just sort of born with them."  
  
"And what’s your special power, exactly?”  
  
"I absorb energy," she explained, knowing that such a vague phrase could never adequately convey the past few years worth of joy and pain caused by the connections she'd had with Cody, Magneto, and Logan, "if people touch my skin, I take in their essence and their memories."  
  
"And that's how I ended up in a coma?" He shrugged, "So... you said you absorb memories?" Rogue blushed slightly.  
  
"Yeah. I guess you could say that you're really a part of me now." Deep down, beneath all the dark memories she had absorbed, Cody had remained buried in her personality. She smiled warmly, "Do you still want to climb Mount Everest?" Cody reddened slightly.  
  
"You knew about that?"  
  
"I also know that you’ve liked me since we were kids." Cody's eyes widened.  
  
"You saw that far inside my mind?" She grinned at him. Even as far as she had run, he had always been with her. She carried her mother's memory in her given name and Cody's memories in the deepest part of her subconscious. All that time she had spent wandering through Canada, she had never truly been alone.  
  
"I saw you," she said, "and you were always there with me, Cody." Her gloved fingertips brushed his cheek. After a second, she felt him flinch involuntarily at her closeness. She withdrew from him.  
  
"Marie- I'm sorry." he insisted, reaching for her hand. Rogue shook her head. In addition to Cody's affection, she could also feel the pain and fear he had experienced.  
  
"It's okay, Cody. I don't want to hurt you again."  
  
"Can you… you know, turn it off?"  
  
"It comes and goes," she said, "but I can't really change it completely." Rogue and Cody watched the lights in silence.  
  
“Cody?” she said, “We should go to Mount Everest.” He looked at her incredulously.  
  
“You don’t mean tonight?!?”  
  
“No!” she laughed, “I just mean that it’s not fair that I got to do all those crazy things we talked about doing when we were kids and you didn’t.” Cody looked at the black opera gloves.  
  
“I don’t have superpowers.”  
  
“I don’t see why that should make a difference!” Cody glanced at his watch.  
  
“You know where we need to go now, don’t you?” he yawned, “We should get home.” Rogue reluctantly nodded in agreement.  
  
"So... do you want to catch the Statue of Liberty before we head back?" Cody asked, "I've never seen it." Rogue bristled slightly.  
  
"It's really not that interesting."  
  


* * *

  
  
When the tires of Scott's bike squealed in the driveway, Marie saw Logan and her mother standing on the front porch. Her mother was in her bathrobe, and Logan was dressed in the white tank top in which he habitually slept. They both looked like they hadn't slept in a few days, and were ready to give Rogue the lecture of her life.  
  
"Whoa," Cody whispered, "maybe we should... uh... run?" Rogue grinned sheepishly.  
  
"I guess we woke them up."  
  
"Oops." As Logan approached them, Cody attempted to hide behind Rogue.  
  
"Cody, is it?" Logan asked, "I think you'd better go home now." He narrowed his feral eyes at the boy.  
  
"Right," he agreed. He turned to face Rogue.  
  
"Give me a call next time you're in town?" Logan’s glare did not stifle the huge grin on her face.  
  
“Come to New York sometime this summer.” Cody leaned forward as though he was about to kiss her, and stopped just before making contact with her lips.  
  
“I’ll see you,” he said as he dismounted the bike. Rogue smiled at Logan .  
  
“We just went to Niagara falls for a few hours,” she frowned, “I think I lost my jacket somewhere in New Jersey.”  
  
"That's nice," Logan said sarcastically, "You need to come inside, Rogue."  
  


* * *

  
  
Once she was inside, Rogue found herself assaulted with questions from both Logan and her mother.  
  
"Marie! If you're not dead, I'm going to kill you," her mother screamed, "Oh God. Are you okay?" her mother demanded, reaching to embrace her daughter.  
  
"Mom!” Rogue jumped out of her grasp, “You can’t touch me when I’m not wearing my jacket!”  
  
When she looked at Logan, she smiled sheepishly, widening her eyes as much as possible.  
  
"You wanna tell me what the Hell that was all about?" he asked. Rogue reached into her pocket and procured a maple leaf key chain.  
  
"I got you a present," she said. It had come from an all-night convenience store somewhere across the border. She dropped it on the coffee table to avoid physical contact with Wolverine. Logan looked at the key chain, and then raised his eyes to meet Rogue's.  
  
"You didn't answer my question," he said, "you really scared your mom." Her mother nodded in agreement. Rogue shrugged.  
  
"I left a note." Logan glared at her.  
  
"'I left a note?'" he repeated incredulously, "'Dear Mom, I've borrowed a bicycle that can go practically the speed of sound for a trip several states away, be back by lunchtime?' That was supposed to make her feel better?  
  
"Oh, please, Logan," she snapped, "It was nothing _you_ wouldn't have done." She turned to leave, and Logan quickly moved to block her exit.  
  
"That,” he said, “is the problem.” She narrowed her eyes at him.  
  
"What's that supposed to mean?"  
  
"I can do things like that," Logan argued, "I don't have a family to worry about." As soon as he spoke those words, he knew that he was in for it. Rogue's lips parted slightly.  
  
"You don't have a family, Logan? What about me?”  
  
"It's... different!" was the only plausible argument he could make.  
  
"How is it different?" she yelled.  
  
"What do you want?" he shouted back, "You want me to be your father?" Rogue buried her face in her dark opera gloves, just wanting for the black cloth to obscure her vision. "Hey..." he said softly, "I'm sorry."  
  
"Just go," she whispered, "please." Logan could still hear her sobbing when he went to the kitchen.  
  


* * *

  
  
Logan found her sitting on the porch. She was staring at the streetlight, and listening to the crickets chirp.  
  
"Hey," he said. She looked at him.  
  
"Hey, yourself," she responded. He sat next to her.  
  
"Look, I'm sorry about what I said. I know you need your dad right now. I'm sorry I can't be that, but I guess... I'm here if you need me." She turned to face him.  
  
"So you're not going to run away again?" she asked.  
  
"I'll stick around if you will."  
  
"Thanks, Logan."  
  


* * *

  
  
After he had held her on top of the Statue of Liberty, Rogue had changed. His memories and personality had affected Rogue as much as her own father's DNA. Logan's own personality traits had subtly influenced hers. For all practical purposes, Rogue might as well have been his kid. Mrs. D'ancanto's words echoed in his mind. There was something more than instinct that was causing him to tighten his grip on the handles of the bike, and to be a little more careful than usual when he leaned into each high-speed turn.  
  
"Hey, Logan? Can we stop for dinner?" Rogue yelled. Logan felt the engine of the bike stutter as it came to a halt. He managed to steer it to the side of the interstate, and Rogue carefully disentangled her arms from his shoulders.  
  
"Did the bike break again?"  
  
He glanced at the gas gage.  
  
"You didn't fill this thing up after you drove it to New York," he concluded. Rogue grinned sheepishly.  
  
"Sorry. I guess we got distracted." Logan raised an eyebrow at her, and she mirrored his expression perfectly.  
  
"'Distracted,' huh? Maybe the next time you and your boyfriend get 'distracted,' you could remember to fill up the tank before you take a cross country ride." He sighed audibly, "This is going to take the rest of our money, kid. Help me get this hunk of metal to the next exit." The sun was setting as Logan and Rogue slowly walked the bike down the empty highway.  
  
"Does this mean we can eat now?" Rogue asked cheerfully.  
  
"Sure," he replied dryly, "you can have anything you want for thirty-two cents."


End file.
